Dr. Dan Doyle’s Dental Mission to Haiti

Last year, I took a trip to Haiti to work on a dental mission with the Haitian Health Foundation (HHF), a charity that was started by Dr. Jerry Lowney in Norwich, Connecticut. This February, I returned for my second trip. The HHF treats patients all over the country, but we spent our time [...] The post Dr. Dan Doyle’s Dental Mission to Haiti appeared first on Doyle Dental.

Last year, I took a trip to Haiti to work on a dental mission with the Haitian Health Foundation (HHF), a charity that was started by Dr. Jerry Lowney in Norwich, Connecticut. This February, I returned for my second trip.

The HHF treats patients all over the country, but we spent our time in the rural villages of Fond Rouge Rorbek, Castash, Decide, Palmista, and Fond Rouge Dayere.   Working conditions are primitive—there is no electricity or running water in the villages, so I usually set up my “office” under the shadiest tree in the village. One of the villages had me set up in the cock-fighting ring next to the church. The furthest village required a two-mile hike: We loaded up a donkey with our dental chairs and surgical instruments, then crossed  a river and walked up the hill to the village.

There are few dentists in the rural areas, so people often live for months or even years with extremely painful teeth. Over my week-long visit, I saw about 100 patients and extracted approximately 200 teeth, which is more than I usually remove in a year at our office in Carmel.

Volunteering in Haiti is incredibly satisfying, and each person we treated seemed grateful to have their painful teeth removed. I’m already gathering supplies to return in 2014.

The post Dr. Dan Doyle’s Dental Mission to Haiti appeared first on Doyle Dental.